AN EXPANDING Scottish oil lubricants business is hoping to grow substantially after taking its first import of oil yesterday.
Northern Oils, based at Buckie, received a shipment of half a million litres of oil from the Middle East, in a move thought to be worth up to £70million in sales over the next three years.
A second shipment of 1.7million litres is on way to the firm at Buckie harbour.
Northern Oils has spent the last three years investing several million pounds in a new 17-acre headquarters at nearby Lintmill, Cullen, and getting consents for the move, including an upgrade for Buckie harbour.
The firm has grown significantly in the past 10 years, from £300,000 turnover to £6.5million this year.
Managing director David Wood, who bought the company in 2008, said: “I saw a big opportunity with oil lubricant because it is a specialist market with a lot of niche products.”
He said: “It is some of the highest quality product in the world and we are cutting out the middle man, buying it direct, which will mean we can offer the best product at a better price and also give us the opportunity to look at export markets and wholesale,” he said.
“We will also have the product in stock. Our service has been built around an off-the-shelf service, which we will be able to do on a larger scale.
“The new site will mean we are more efficient.”
Export markets could be Europe and Scandinavia, especially in the marine and offshore industries.
The firm also serves industrial, renewables, forestry, food processing, automotive and leisure sectors.
Mr Wood joined the business, which was set up in the 1960s, straight from a degree at the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen.
Since buying the firm, he has opened other depots in Shetland, Glasgow and Birmingham, covering England, the last two through acquisitions, and grown the firm’s fleet of vehicles to 34.
He has increased the products and the markets the firm serves. He has also boosted the sales team from one to eight and staffing in the past two years has risen to nearly 50 with a further 14 people due to be taken on by the end of February, Mr Wood said.
